R: All Students Must Study the Classics

The heritage of foundational documents from the American Constitution to the Shakespearian Romance can be traced to the ideas set forth in the canon of Western literature, aptly entitled the Classics. The lessons of Plato's Republic echoed through the halls of Philadelphia and continue to underpin the corridors of Washington. Current political philosophers continue to grapple with Aristotle, Thucydides is invoked in descriptions of modern war, and Homeric heroes still dominate literature, film, and theatre. As the world continues to change, it is yet again time to debate the merits of these great texts. What is the role of history, especially that long past, the nature of ideas, especially those often forgotten, and the duties of the scholar, especially those unfulfilled, in forming a proper education?

Society is often shaped by the educated but what mustdictate the lessons they learn? Do we institute a core curriculum for the erudite? Are the lessons of the West to be prized above other knowledge? The lessons of the classics are imprinted in the present, and it is of paramount importance to both students and society to understand what obligations we have to past thinkers and to what extent we should allow their ideas to permeate the present and the future.